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rocket attacks and air strikes. tensions escalate between israelis and palestinians. we're going to go to jerusalem for a live report. the world's largest broadcaster floundering. it is chaotic. more bbc executives are stepping aside after falsely implicating a former british politician in a child sex scandal. plus, we're going to take you under water. pretty cool stuff. to a one of a kind museum that's delighting divers off the coast of mexico and protecting the area's fragile reefs. we begin with the latest on the bombshell story. it has led to the resignation of david petraeus. here's the latest on the players and the events. here's how it all started. it started when jill kelly, a friend of general petraeus, contacted the fbi about threatening emails she said she received from another woman. that woman was paula broadwell who wrote petraeus's biography. she said she used to jog with

the general while he was leading the war in afghanistan. they got to know each other. the fbi checked petraeus's e-mail accounts and said they had not been compromised. petraeus was interviewed by the fbi, but it is unclear if broadwell has been questioned. i want to bring in joel kelly, her husband released this statement earlier today. this is the statement. it says, "we and our family have been friends with general petraeus and his family for over five years. we respect his and his family's privacy and want the same for us and our three children." we are also now learning that paula broadwell revealed information regarding the investigation of the attack on the consulate in benghazi, li a libya. a video of her speaking in denver has now surface odd youtube. >> i don't know if a lot of you heard this, about the the cia annex had taken a couple of libyan militia members prisoner and they think that the attack on the consulate was an effort to try to get these prisoners back, so it's still being

vetted. >> so i want to bring in suzanne kelli in washington, and, first of all, tell us a little bit about this video that we're seeing. the fbi so far is determined that security has not been compromised. the agents have interviewed petraeus. what does it say here when you have this woman talking about the cia's investigation into benghazi very publicly? >> well, and you heard for yourself on that piece of video, suzanne. this information hasn't been vetted. is this really something that should appropriately be put out in the public arena in the way that it was? that gets to the very nature of why this relationship was really so messy and so complicated and in the end really inappropriate, but, first of all, i want to say that in temz of what she said about libya and the cia taking prisoners there, this is something that the agency, of course, adamantly denies doing, but the issue really is her extraordinary access to petraeus. when a woman like this who has written a book about him, who, you know, talks openly about the

close access she has and relationship with him says something like that, it takes it a whole different level, and you don't really know if there's somehow more credibility. is that what general petraeus told her? that's when all the questions really starts. it speaks to the nature of how messy this relationship was, suzanne? >> do we have any idea about the kind of information that has been revealed. do we know if she has classified information? is there any sense at all that there is some sort of security risk? >> well, apparently there was no security risk, and that's what we're hearing from law enforcement officials that they determined that there was not, in fact, a security risk, and believe it or not, it's not illegal for the director of the cia or another government employee for that matter to have an affair, but there are other questions that can elevate that affair that can come into play that do need to be investigated. one of them, of course, would be if that person were having an affair with a foreign national or something like that, but the other would be looking closely at are other things being exposed that shouldn't be, and, you know, we know from general

petraeus, too, a couple of big headlines here. he has been reaching out to talk to friends throughout the weekend about this, expressing, again, his regret, but he insists to friends that paula is the only woman he had an fair with, that there were not other women, so i think when you look at the combination of sending threatening emails to this woman jill kelly, the general is insisting that it was just paula broadwell, he made a terrible mistake, and now is really focus odd trying to fix things with his wife of 37 years. >> do we know at all the nature of these threats and these emails? do we have any sense of how serious this is? >> you know, we were told actually by -- actually dana bash had spoken with someone earlier today, a government source that's familiar with the investigation who confirmed to her that the tone of these emails was very jealous, but we don't know, you know, much more beyond that. it's kind of easy to speculate, but if you look at the access that paula actually had to the general, you know, could you go anywhere with it, and i hate to speculate, but we do know that they were described as people

who were brief odd them as being very jealous in their tone and nature. >> all right. susan kelly, thank you very much. we'll be following this very closely. he disappeared in syria more than two months ago. now the parents of american journalist austin tyce, they are making a public plea for help. plus this. >> during our lifetime i guess we won't have any high hopes, really any hopes are for the children. >> millions have been rescued from poverty in china, but the road to real prosperity is proving to be a long one for many. ♪ and a veteran symphony almost 70 years now in the making. and i took nyquil, but i'm still stubbed up. [ male announcer ] truth is, nyquil doesn't unstuff your nose. what? [ male announcer ] alka-seltzer plus liquid gels speeds relief to your worst cold symptoms plus has a decongestant for your stuffy nose. thanks. that's the cold truth!

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its air strikes hit key palestinian targets in the gaza strip, including what is described as a terror tunnel and a weapons storage facility. in three straight days of fighting, six palestinians have been killed, and another 30 wounded. according to the israeli military, more than 110 rockets hit southern israel injuring at least four civilians. today in northern israel israeli military sources report hitting syrian targets after two days of cross-border fire. officials say its retaliation for mortar shells that hit near a military post in golan heights. this marks the first time israel has fired on syria since 1973. cnn senior international correspondent sarah is joining us from jerusalem to talk a little bit about all of this that's taking place, and you had a chance, an exclusive, to sit down with israel's president simon peres to talk about what is taking place there. it is somewhat alarming, the escalating violence. does he think that there is really going to be kind of an escalation in gaza?

>> well, we asked him that question directly, and he made it sound as if there was not going to be a major escalation, but couch that with saying that they had to see what the proper thing is to do there, because we have been seeing dozens upon dozens of rockets coming in to israel. much of this started really on thursday with the death of a 13-year-old palestinian boy who was in gaza simply playing football outside of his home. he was shot and killed. now, the witnesses there said that the shots came from israeli soldiers in a jeep. however, the israeli military is investigating and they say they do not believe they were in that area, and that they do not believe they were responsible for the death of this child. that investigation is ongoing, but since then, there has been a lot more action with militants in gaza first sending an anti-tank missile into an israeli jeep on the israel side of the gaza border. that injured four soldiers, two of them severely.

they had shrapnel wounds to the head, and then the fighting started. israel returning fire to that same area where that anti-missile came from. that particular blast from the military in israel actually hit a few more homes, and that's how you see all of these casualties. more than 30 people injured. four people killed. all civilians there, but then there were air strikes following that killing two militants and damaging some areas that had some of the militants weapons. now, let us go to the president of israel. we asked him today about the situation in gaza and the situation with israel and would we see a major escalation? here's what he had to say. >> i think they can do both. there is a permissiveness. now there is no permissiveness to kill. if they want to -- they cannot

be permissive in killing we cannot have a million mothers that cannot have a night's sleep because they have to watch their babies not to be hit by rockets. >> he talked about that for both sides. that if one side keeps sending rockets into israel, they cannot expect israel not to defend itself and to return fire. that's the latest situation going on here. we do know that there has been a lot of damage that has happened in israel. two hoursz houses, for sure, have been hit and a building. there have also been four civilians injured in israel. >> sarah, talk about another threat, potential threat to israel. that is iran. we saw famously benjamin netanyahu, the prime minister of israel before the u.n. with that diagram talking about the redline. what was peres's definition of that red line?

is it the same as the united states? >> it's really interesting because all the talk about iran and it being the most dangerous threat to the world has -- we've heard very, very little about iran from the leaders here in israel, but we did ask president peres what he thought about if israel decided to strike iran because here in this country there has been a lot of argument and some investigative stories that have come out that show that mr. netanyahu was at odds with his military commanders as to whether or not they could have a strike on raurn done only by israel without the help of the united states and have that be a successful one. here is what the president had to say about it. >> i think that, first of all, we have we have all we have to do without any strike at home, and we have to add the time and collect the measures to bring an

end to the iranian danger by economic and political pressure. this is the preference of the united states, and this is the preference of israel. now, i believe that with president obama, that that is his position, and we have to go together. >> interesting that he mentioned the president of the united states position, but the prime minister's position has been very similar, although he has been much more hawkish about saying that if these sanctions don't work, that they have to consider whether or not to strike iran's nuclear program. we do have to say that iran has constantly said that it is not working on a weapon, but working on its nuclear program for civilian purposes. suzanne. >> all right. excellent reporting as always. exclusive sarah seidner, appreciate it. americans tend to spend a lot of money on black friday and

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president obama will have a new leader in beijing. this man xi jinping is expected to take over the communist party on thursday. next march is he likely to be named china's new president. xi first visited the united states back in 1985, met with president obama earlier this year. western analyst regards xi as someone who wants to have good relations with the united states. china's struggling economy is just one of the many challenges that's facing the country's next leader. while, some chinese have done well, but others are falling further behind because of inflation. imagine this. paying five times more for rent than you did four years ago. that's right.

while cnn senior international correspondent stan grant has an inside look at what is happening. china's widening wealth gap. take a look. >> this is a little piece of home. they gather here to dance on street corners and come to the cities searching for a bit of life. for some china's booming economy has been music to their ears. for others the tune has turned more somber. life in a rundown neighborhood so close to the riches of the new china that they could reach out and touch it almost. >> translator: we came to work in the city. >> reporter: and he his wife had followed the china dream to beijing. this is where they live in a tiny one-room house with their baby son. there is room for a bed. barely anything else. for them it isn't cheap.

>> translator: back in 2009 when we first came to beijing, the house rent was a bit more than about $15 a month. now it is five times that. >> reporter: inflation has hit the poor hard. >> translator: prices are high. our daily expense is high. it is the same back in hometown. everything is expensive. it's not easy to save money. >> reporter: like minimum, they dream of a better life, a bigger house, and hopes for her son. >> translator: he doesn't want a bigger house, but have you to work hard. he has to work hard. i don't have any income. just stay home and take care of the baby. >> reporter: for more than two decades, the china miracle has lifted hundreds of millions of people out of poverty. mi grant workers have flocked to communities just like this on the edge of big cities looking for a better life. the fear now, though, is that those days may be coming to an end. the economy is slowing. the gap between rich and poor is

getting wider. analysts here say the poor in china increasingly finds the doors to success are being slammed shut. even those who lived the dream are waking up to a new reality. higher bills, longer working hours, more stress. >> international correspondent stan grant in baneijing, thank you. on the other side of china's wealth gap are people that have prospered. they set a record in e manufacture commerce sales for a little known holiday calls singles day. so yesterday was, like, 11-11, right? were you up at 11:11 on 11-11? >> i was. >> you had to make a wish if you are superstitious in any way. tell us about this. >> well, it's symbolic, and singles day is always celebrated on that day because it's 11-11, four single ones, that means that it's bear sticks, unattached more or less. it started as this grassroots movement as a way for singles to

combat their, like, valentine's day. valentine's is for couples, and we want a headline day for ourselves. as we know, with most of these things, they turn into big business. it started off -- what they do is on that day couples go out. they go wine and dine and go on blind dates. >> this is much more than we see here in the united states when you talk about cyber monday and all these other holidays that we have with shopping. explain, like, just how big this thing is. >> well, we'll put it in numbers terms, right? >> right fwrsh. >> yesterday alone in a 24-hour period, the chinese went on-line, clicked on their mouses and generated $3.04 billion in revenue. >> wow. >> this is a country that for the longest time, you know, it's really known for its investments and exports. consumer domestic consumption is not something that they're known for, but they really have a push

towards that right now. cyber monday last year generated $1.25 billion, so you can see, i mean, we have a lot of ground to cover right now. that's coming up. >> so is this a trend? i mean, we're going see this every year? you think this is going to keep expand sng. >>en only we talked about in stan grant's piece, you e talked about the wealth gap. there's also a gender gap that's taking place, and the reason for that is for many generations there's been in preference over boys over girls, so now what we're seeing is that come the year 2020 suzanne there will be 24 million more men many china, single men, who are looking for women that just aren't there, and i don't think you can put a price tag on that. you can't buy these women, okay? >> these ladies have many options then. >> they do, and they have to be wooed with really nice gifts. >> so the spending will continue. thank you so much. >> you're welcome. well, he disappeared in syria. now two american parents, they are now pleading for their son's release. the latest on a missing journalist austin tyce.

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after months of pressure by the u.s. for syrian opposition groups to act together and get their act together they're finally ending up at -- ending the fighting here trying to unite against the assad regime. the group signed an agreement on sunday in qatar saying it's going to not take part in any dialogue with the regime. it's only going to accept a new government. it is called the national coalition forces of the syrian revolution. now, this move comes after the u.s. and the arab league pressured the op sfwligs groups to speak with one voice. more than 35,000 syrians have died in 20 months of civil war. meanwhile, a bombing send huge plumes of smoke. you can see that into the air near syria's border with turkey today. a syrian fighter gem bombed a town to try to win back control of the area from rebel forces.

now, dozens of syrians ran from that area scrambling to cross a border fence to escape into turkey. thousands of syrian refugees have fled into turkey since the civil war began. the parents of a missing american journalist austin tyce are pleading for his release today. tyce, he last talked to his family three months ago. he snuck into syria to report on the uprising. his parents traveled to lebanon to get a closer look to finding some answers. cnn asked them earlier today if they've learned any more about their son's whereabouts. >> everyone we spoke to and we've spoken to everyone we can has said the same thing that are unsure where he is. they doeb know who he is with, where he is. we're hoping for answers, and we're here appealing to the people in the region to have compassion in their family.

>> arwa, it is heartbreaking when you see this kind of thing unfolding. you have this shaky video that surfaces on youtube showing who they believe, i guess, is tyce surround bid armed men walking him up a hill. what do we know about how he is or where he is. >> unfortunately very little, and that is what has been incredibly difficult for his parents. just this information point that exists on where their son is and who actually has them. now, the video that you are referencing there actually raised a lot of questions. it wasn't posted like most extremist videos on jihady web sites. it was posted anonymously. when being viewed by experts on the matter, that the men who were holding and moving austin tyce along were wearing that did not match the dress that most extremists would be wearing inside a place like syria, for example. as some people have speculated that he is, in fact, in the custody of the syrian government. now, we asked his parents at the

press conference earlier today if they had been able to reach out to the syrian government. they said that they had both direct and indirect contact with them, but the syrian authorities are denying that tyce is currently in their custody, and that is why the parents' plea is so critical to them because they really just want any tidbit of information, any knowledge, who is holding him, is he well, is he alive, and more importantly, how can they get him back? >> arwa, do we know if, in fact, it's helpful at all for them to be in the area to be in the region trying to reach out to the syrian government or other people over there? are they doing more harm than good? is this a good idea? >> well, it's very difficult to assess that at this point, suzanne. they've really only just arrived. they're going to be holding a series of meetings with various individuals who they think might be able to help them, might be able to perhaps reach people within the syrian government within rebel units who may have

more of an idea of where austin could be. his last known whereabouts were an area just outside of the capital damascus. the opposition activist he was moving around with found his disappearance quite mysterious as well, so it's really hard to gauge that, but most certainly at the least having direct contact with people who can help for them and being more accessible for people who may want to come forward with information. that's how they're viewing it at this stage? >> all right. arwa damon, thank you. any more details, bring them to us. appreciate it. sfwlimplgts when world war ii came to an end, one veteran had some time on his hands while waiting for his orders. and this was the result. a story of how a symphony was composed in 1945, but wasn't performed until 2012. hey big guy,

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a big thank you to all veterans who sve this country with such distinction. finally there's an orchestra performing a symphony that he wrote decades ago. traces the sadness, the struggle, and the victory of world war ii. just listen. >> my age is 3, and i'm a veteran of world war ii, and in 1945 i was stationed in new orleans, louisiana at the new orleans army air base, and i was an instructor. the peace in europe had already

been written in april of that year, and so they said we can do anything we want to. during those seven years as it sat on the shelf, would i look at it every once in a while and think why isn't this being played? >> my brother and i came upon the bound copy of the symphony. i talked with a senator from michigan where my dad lives. senator livon -- the next thing we do is we had a better back from the secretary saying we would like to perform this symphony. >> i open this and got accessible, very maligned. when you sit down and play something, you know exactly

what's behind it. >> so the first movement of my symphony is about the sadness of that period, the extreme sadness and sorrow of the holocaust and the terrible loss of life. the second movement is sort of being geared for -- and the third movement is the warfare itself. the boys going to omaha beach and invading germany. the end of that year i have a victory march.

>> that is awesome. i love that. another story a fight against terrorism, big setback. the british government radical islamic cleric is staying put in england after an immigration appeals court blocked his extradition. he is accused of funding terrorist groups. the british officials have been trying to kick him out of the country for years. he insists he won't get a fair trial. sfwlirchgts in greece where the parliament just signed off on a budget for next year. it includes plenty of spending cuts, and those cuts haven't gone over too well with the folks there. you see a crowd in athens protesting last night against those cuts, but now that the deal is done, greece will get its hands on international bailout funds. that's going to keep the country from going bankrupt. back here in the states the epic downfall of lance armstrong, it continues. the cycling icon has now quit his livestrong foundation entirely. the foundation statement says armstrong chose to resign from

the foundation to "spare the organization any negative effects as a result of controversy surrounding his cycling career." armstrong previously gave up his position as chairman in the wake of the growing doping scandal, but said he would remain involved. he still insists that never cheated. u.k.'s biggest broadcaster making headlines, of course, on its own drowning in the scandal. the bbc vows to get a grip on his organization. a bit of a live report from london. control. our abundant natural gas is already saving us money, producing cleaner electricity, putting us to work here in america and supporting wind and solar. though all energy development comes with some risk, we're committed to safely and responsibly producing natural gas. it's not a dream. america's natural gas... putting us in control of our energy future, now.

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more heads are rolling at the bbc. the director general resigned over the weekend, and today the head of the news division has stepped aside at the bbc. this latest resignation came after a politician was falsely accused of a sex abuse scandal at the network. not the only skamdz. the former kids tv host who died last year has since been accused of being a pedophile. the network is said to be getting their reputation back. mark thompson used to run the bbc and now works for the "new york times". >> like many people i'm very saddened by repeat events at the bbc, but i believe the bbc is the world's greatest broadcaster and no doubt it will once again regain the public's trust both in the u.k. and around the world. it's a very important institution, and i think it's full of people with great

talent. >> dan rirz is live from our london bureau. dan, plane to us how they think these resignations will help. >> well, i think just sort of trying to sort of clear out minimum who could have been held responsible for these decisions. the problem that they haven't actually fired or set aside the people that were involved. the people that have stood aside so far, the head of news and her deputy, during this latest decision weren't actually involved at all. it was a completely different chain of command. i wouldn't be surprised if there are more announcements with people either being forced into monday active roles or being forced out of it altogether. to tut putt this in a nutshell ownering the one hand they've had one of their own tv personalities who was a pedophile, and they didn't report on that, and they did put the report on air which wasn't true about a politician, so one

thing after another. it left them with no choice but to stabbed down, and now the guy that's been put in as a former marketing chief from peps where i. tloo it looks like hot mess over there. is there any recourse for the foels who came forward who said, look, this tv host abused me as a child? what's the latest with that? >> oh, they're lining up to sue not only the bbc, but other institutions as well including care homes and hospitals where this abuse was set to take place. the think the important hinge in all this, though, a lot of people are saying that it's important to remember that there are victims in all this. this isn't just the kind of story about the media. this is a story about pedophiles and about their victims and about them spending 14 years trying to get justice basically. a lot of the people that are suing are saying it's not about the money. it's simply about getting to the truth and holding people accountable. >> and, dan, do we think the bbc essentially is iffing to survive?

are they going to be able to get over this? people put money in, government puts money in, for this network. >> we all pay for it here in britain. we have no coys. if you have a tv, you have to pay a license fee, a tax basically. you have to pay for it. there's no doubt the bbc will survive this. it's a complete institution here. it's a sort of bedrock of society in britain, so there's no danger of it not surviving. perhaps what is dangerous is the program on which these reports went out or didn't go out may number jeopardy "news line." that may be axed, and there's going to be some high profile casualties in all in, but the bbc itself will survive. i'm sure it will come back. >> dan rivers, thank you, dan. >> it's been called the floating city, but right now most of it is completely under water. check it out. more than 7% of the city of venice, italy, is actually flooded after recent storms unleashing torrential rain. this is the sixth worst flooding

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one of the biggest rock stars is trepding on twitter right now. lead songer bono says he will make an appeal to republicans and democrats on a visit to washington this week. he wants the two parties to avoid cutting funding to development programs. bono says the cuts would endanger life-saving treatments for h.i.v. aids and programs formal murished children. the two parties are discussing

various spending cuts to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. you probably have never seen this before. it is under water art. this is an exhibit that also doubles as an ecology project. neck barker discusses how it work. >> reporter: welcome to an underwater world of mysterious figures frozen in time. this unique museum off the coast of cancun has nearly 500 sculptures sunken in the water. a growing tourist attraction is a vital frontline in conservation as it diverts divers from the fragile coral reefs. it's a labor of love for british artist jason taylor who began the project in 2009. >> i was a diver, and i had been diving around the world in various places. i had this vision that i always wanted to create this underwater seascape, and i was also looking into the conservation element of it, that it could be used to

create an artificial reef. it started off as a pilot project in grenada. we just did a few pieces. >> the project called the eye. officials tried to restore the region's reefs damaged by 2005's hurricane. >> we thought that by -- this project would become an icon for canc cancun. >> his models, taylor looked to the area around his studio, including local boatmen. he was the inspiration for man on fire, one of the most iconic works. >> we're really happy and proud of having his work. >> reporter: taylor has staggered the deployment of statues over a few years so some look cleaner than others. the visual evidence of mate

gradually taking over his actually silent evolution. crucially the statues are made for a p.h. nuderal material to attract fish and coral, and the cement is high grade to with stand strong currents. the museum is an obvious boon to business. >> we estimate that 100% of the park is about 750,000 people. we get 40%. >> the world is facing extreme pressures from all sides. issues with water quality and global warming that are some of the biggest problems. this combats that. >> taylor's statues might just be the -- they say they have a permit for up to 10,000 sculptures, and tourists will be

able to -- right now the project lacks funding, so it's an open question how much the young water landscape will continue to evolve. nick parker, cnn, cancun, mexico. >> pretty cool. prince charles goes to work making a carpet during the diamond jubilee fair. we'll show you the masterpiece up next. [ man ] in hong kong, on my way to the board meeting...

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algeria. the song is also famous across europe. >> bond. >> take the bloody shot. >> after four years james bond back with a bang. skyfall, the latest of the british spy's adventures set a record pulling in $87.8 million. not bad. also, the seven best november open weekend forever for any movie. the reality tv world and silicone valley colliding now. the search is on for who can come up with the next great whered. >> i never thought i would ever get here, but i'm here now, and i'm going to make an impact. >> the reason i wanted to devote my entire life to technology. >> the reality show is called "silicone valley" and it's now

starring on bravo. the show benefits from the convergence of technology and pop culture. check it out. >> technology is such a part of pop culture. it's a part of all of our lives. it's a part of how we parent our children. it's a part of how we get jobs. it's a part of how we find love. most people are within an arm's length of their mobile phones, like, 99% of the take. >> randy zuckerburg took the company public to start her own media company. several stories caught our attention today. photos as well. take a look. in india a little girl holds a stick to balance as she tight-ropes in the streets. children earn a meager living for their families by street prfling. this town was bombed by syrian forces. more than 100,000 syrians have fled to turkey since syria's

civil war began just last year. in new zealand prince charles learning how to use a gun used to make carpets. the royal logo is on the one he is working on. it's part of the queen's diamond jubilee float. this is cnn newsroom. new details now on the resignation of former cia director david petraeus. since he admitted to having an extramarital affair, we have learned that the fbi was investigating the general's private emails months ago. that probe led to his rez iing nation. it all started when jill kelly, a friend of general pat yas contacted the fbi about threatening emails she said she received from another woman. that woman seen here was paula broadwell. now, she wrote petraeus's biography and said she used to jog with the general when he was

leading the war in afghanistan, and now lawmakers are angry. they want to know why they're just finding out about all of this, including senator dianne feinstein who chairs the senate intelligence committee. >> we received no advanced notice. it was like a lightning bolt. the way i found out, i came back to washington thursday night. friday morning the staff director told me there was a number of calls to friends about this. i called david petraeus. i talked to the director twice. this is very hard stuff. >> hard stuff. many different layers as well. now there's a video of paula broadwell that has gone viral on youtube. it is revealing where she's revealing manufacturings about the cia's investigation into the attack on the consulate in benghazi. check it out. >> the cia annex had taken a couple of libyan militia members

prisoner, and they think that the attack on the consulate was an effort to try on get these prisoners back, so that it's still being vetted. >> still being vetted. then wills had from the general's former spokesman, steven whalen, who spoke out about the scandal this morning. >> i would say he is embarrassed, but is he keenly aware of the hurt and pain he has caused, and he is concerned that people understand that this one happened after he had retired from the army. the affair started approximately two months after he was in the cia, and it ended about four months ago. >> cnn has correspondents covering this big story. obviously including our television correspondent suzanne kelli covering the petraeus affair, and its national impact on our security and white house correspondent briana keiller is covering the shake-up in the president's cabinet and the national security team. suzanne, i want to start off with you, first of all. tell us a little bit about this video that we are seeing of broadwell. we know that the fbi says so far that there's no security element

that's been compromised. was there anything in that video that says she knew something that was classified or she was sharing something that wasn't supposed to be shared? >> well, you can almost read into it a little bit by the words she used herself, which were this is something that hasn't quite yet been vetted. have you to look at the information she was sharing, and the cia actually holding prisoners there, and that means that she is sharing something that she heard with a public audience. now, that's concerning because you have to ask what's her source. is the source of all of her information david petraeus? given her extraordinary access to the former director of the cia, it would have been a reasonable assumption, but, again, her access to him was not in any way in an official capacity, hoe she did tell me this summer she was working with the general and writing a second book. now, a senior intelligence officials the detention claims are categorically not true.

the damage is really done just by her putting that information out there. >> how do they conclude now that there's no national security risk? >> well, that's why the fbi steps in. the fbi is charged with an investigation. details of this leaking out all over the place, what was in those emails. they need to go through those emails to determine whether or not there was a security risk. we know that it's not illegal arks coringed to a senior intelligence official, affairs are not automatically considered a security violation unless the affair is going on with a person from another country and it hasn't been reported, but you can have affairs, actually, and you can report them, and it sort of becomes okay. there are no prohibitions on private e-mail accounts. we've heard that there is a private e-mail account, possibly g-mail account, could be something else that the fbi was looking into where a lot of the exchanges went back and forth. no rules that say you're not allowed as director of the cia or any other government position to not have a private e-mail

account. mother interesting tidbit in all of this. >> do we know that if petraeus, is he iffing to be testifying before members of the senate intelligence committee? do we know if he will actually go before them? >> you know, a few of them are really pressing for that to happen. it's not going to happen this thursday at these closed hearings that we're having on benghazi and libya. the guy in the hot seat will be michael morrell. he will be asked next friday when general petraeus offered his resignation to step up and become the acting director. he is a career veteran. he has been on this benghazi investigation since day one and feels very passionately about it. i'm sure that he will be able to answer questions just as david pets yas could. >> susan kelli, thank you. even before david petraeus dropped the bombshell and resigned, it was well known that there were several senior officials in the obama administration looking to leave for the second term. secretary of state lilg healthing hillary rodham clinton and leon panetta both expected to depart. likewise, the president might have to find replacement for treasury secretary timothy geithner and attorney general eric holder if they decide that

they, too, would like to leave. toipt bring in our white house correspondent briana keiller to talk about just more on the president's plate here. how does this add to what he needs to get done starting in the next year? >> it really adds to it. i mean, you've got this issue, obviously, that comes after any re-election. the turnover of the cabinet, suzanne, but just think of the big plate that this is being added to. first offer, the fiscal cliff. that is obviously the biggest issue that president obama has to deal with. you're looking at tax cuts that expire at the very end of december, and then those spending cuts that are set to kick in on january 2nd. as he works, obviously, figuring out the new faces on his cabinet. he has his anything raugs on january 20th, and february is a big month as well. he needs to summit a budget at the beginning of the month. it's possible the debt ceiling the treasury department says could be hit that month. in ma the funding for the federal government is set to

expire so that could mean a possible government shut down if agreement on that isn't find. >> that's a lot. want to take a look at this schedule there. a very busy calendar. possible replacement for petraeus. this is obviously one of those positions he is going to want to fill rather quickly. >> that's right. you heard, susan talking about michael morrell. he is the acting now cia director. he was the number two to david petraeus. he is someone who really has the president's trust. he is also well liked on the hill so that helps as well, and then john brennan, the president's top advisor for counterterrorism and homeland security is also i name you're hearing a lot of. he has been in the administration for four years. you know he is pretty -- probably pretty tired at this point, but he is definitely being discussed as someone who might throw his hat in the ring for this, and then also former congresswoman jane harmon got out of congress recently. she was the ranking member of the house intelligence

committee, but really especially the first two names. these are really the names that are the most distinguished on what's a rather long list of possible replacement for petraeus. >> and briana, real quickly, tell us about this gang of eight that's going to start to sit down and try to work on avoiding this big fiscal cliff. >> they should going to try to work on this for republican senators. what our senior congressional correspondent dana bash has been reporting, though, if you talk to leaders, talk to the white house, i think it's seen more likely that this is a leadership level lish. trying to work on something, but i think a lot of folks downplaying the expectation that that's really where the solution for the fiscal cliff comes from. you do know, of course, that the top republican and the top democrat in both the house and the senate are going to be at the white house on friday. congress is back in tomorrow. there's a lot of details to work out. this is really just the beginning of it. whether, you know, democrats want to increase taxes on wealth

where i americans, the white house wants to do that as well, suzan suzanne. republicans are talking about finding a we to increase tax rev new. maybe through closing loopholes, but the fact is all of these details need to be worked out, and this is the really tough stuff to work out. >> it is the tough stuff. i notice, too, no females in that gang of eight there, briana. interesting. >> no. >> all right. thank you. you got your work cut out for you. here's what we're also working on for the hour. >> 13 days after superstorm sandy slammed the east coast. the commute is new york is still a mess. a look at the recovery effort that has people still struggling to get to work. plus, 18 states offer medical marijuana. now two stits have legalized recreational pot. the health benefits of weed. and scandal on sesame street. this man, the voice of elmo, is

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sxwlirchlgts before friday you might have not heard of her, but today we're talking about paula broadwell, the woman who had an extramarital fair with now former cia director david petraeus. she's a married mother of two, an honors fwrad wat of west point and retired army reserve major who served for 15 years. we've also heard about her from media appearances, including an interview she did with our brook baldwin. in it she described her extraordinary access to the general. >> and at some point i think he realized i was taking this research very seriously. i was sharing hardship with the troops and risk and so forth,

and decided to open up a little bit more access, but we had a relationship before i went there as far as this dissertation was concerned, so it just took it to another level. >> paula broadwell also talked about interviewing general petraeus while running with him on a visit. there is what she said on "the daily show" in january. >>ure you're a runner, and you immediate to get to know him, and he wanted to run with you, so you ran together. >> this is a typical mechanism he uses to get to know young people. he has done it throughout his life. it was an opportunity for me to interview him on a run and i think -- i thought i would test him, but he was going to test me. >> there are now complaints from congress that members of the intelligence committees, they were kept in the dark about the fbi's investigation, and it also includes senate intelligence committee chairman woman dianne feinstein. heefrz what she said over the weekend. >> i actually wish we had been briefed a little bit earlier. all of this, obviously, comes as a big schott shock.

we are very much able to keep things in a classified setting. >> feinstein says she was not informed until friday. i want to bring in our cnn contributor tom, an fbi assistant director, and, tom, does she have a point? does the senator have a point? should they have been informed earlier? >> hi, suzanne. no, wronks. the protocols are very strict, and those protocols protect members of congress as well as any other high official many terms of when notifications are made. they're going to approximate become public, and the senator may say or try to claim that it's going to remain confidential. historically we've seen that that usually is not the case. that's why the protocols were in place. she would have and key members of congress at the white house would have been made aware of the investigation earlier if

evidence of criminal activity or a security breach had, many of the, been discovered. if that had been discovered by the fbi, they would have made the notifications, but they haven't, and at that point there's really not a requirement to have the confidentiality of the investigation maintained until the fbi and the department of justice that there's not going to be a criminal prosecution, and there has not been a breach of security. >> so why would the fbi be investigating this in the first place? i mean, she has a buddy or somebody in the fbi. they decide to do a little reconnaissance mission of their own. is that typical here? i mean, they must have been something pretty damning in those emails for the fbi to continue this march through this investigation. >> based on the fbi has jurisdiction. if someone uses the internet or

the interstate phone system to make threats against another person. then it's just a question of how serious do the threats look? do they really look like it could be dangerous? they begin the investigation. in this case a complaint had been made so you have someone reported to be kelly saying she's in fear having received these emails. it's reported to the fbi. they begin the investigation. now, initially they don't know who is spending the messages, so they have to subpoena internet records and you have cyber experts look at the messaging to see whose computer is that coming from, is the person who owns that computer actually the sender or is somebody else using the computer or hacking into the system? during the course of subpoenaing those records and then discovering that a number of messages are going to and from another person, which later determined to be director pet yashgs hen they have to subpoena those records and learn, you know, what's the nature of this and, of course, in the investigation of the sender,

they're trying to determine is the send are acting alone? is the sender part of a malish wra group or dpesic or international terrorist organization? that all has to be run to ground, and is the sender threatening other people? is the victim that's making the complaint the only person that's being threatened, and in terms of the messaging to and from director petraeus, is he aware of it? has his system been hacked into? these are all on their public internet accounts. none of this is going back and forth over classified government systems. >> so this could happen to any normal citizen. i mean, this defendant's exhibit go to this level because it was general petraeus, head of the cia? is that correct? medical they start seeing what the messages are, the nature of the threat and who is sending them and what level the victim is at in terms of a high government position where there is additional sensitivity, then

it kind of takes a step by step methodical approach that leads it -- leads the investigators eventually to determine that messages are going back and forth between the sender and director petraeus. >> when there were legal restriction on what could be shared in the relationship. when i was an executive in the fbi before my retirement i had high cia officials assigned to work with me at fbi headquarters. fbi has senior officials embedded throughout cia headquarters and working together in the field. the cia is well aware that if an allegation is made against minimum, whether it's here in the cia or they're somewhere else in the government, that's the fbi's responsibility, and they have the jurisdiction to look at the matter, on visit the matter. this is not based on, you know -- again, the fbi begins

its investigation. they have no clue that it's going to lead to someone at the cia, so this is -- the thing about animosity with the cia is in this matter particularly ridiculous. >> david petraeus visit security clearance on cnm.com for more information. still thousands of folks without power. across ten states, recovering from superstorm sandy taking longer, much longer accident than people had hoped. >> god is with us, and we know we're going to have help soon. i trust in our government, you know, we're going to have help soon, and everything is going to be all right. ♪ ♪ we're lucky,

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it's been almost two weeks and superstorm sandy devastated. for many life is anything but memorial. the deaths of two more people now linked for the superstorm. it brings the mof those killed across the region to 113.

>> you have been talking to people. this must be frustrating here. two weeks now, and it is really hard to get around and to even cope. >> very hard get around, and it's just as difficult to stay at home because the people who live in this building behind me, the ocean village community this is building three. we walked up to the 14th floor to speak to doris hood. she has no running water, no heat, no electricity. she does have gas, so she lights up her stove and leaves the oven open to heat her small apartment. we've seen a lot of trucks come through here recently. we've seen the red cross. weave seen the national guard. we've been told that doctors without borders came and knocked on the doors. we've seen occupy sandy in the community room here at this building. even the aspca is here handing out dog food to the dog owners here to the pet owners.

we have not seen anyone here to hook up the generators on the property. there's three of them that are not connected to the building. we're going into the third week here, and we're told that the conditions inside the building are deplorable. let's go to what one resident told us. >> the smell is horrendous. the the staircase is dark. everything is scary. i'm coming down the steps, and i might see a dead body somewhere. it's horrendous. >> reporter: we saw a member of the management team here on property, mr. michael prush, and told us very quickly that he would have to decline comment. he would get back to us. he did not. we put in a message through e-mail and a call to try to get a response to our questions about why the generator has not been hooked up. now going into the third week without power here. suzanne. >> they have no explanation from b why these generators aren't being hooked up yet? >> no. the residents here and the

president of the tenants board dropped it here. they said they came here on saturday night. just were not connected. still haven't been connected. i just heard the president of the board bryant pearson right here yelled that there is someone going to come out and make a statement. when we get that, hopefully it's coming, we'll, of course, bring it to all of you. >> you let us know when there's something going on over there. obviously they have to be held accountable. thank you, victor. if you want to help the storm victims in the northeast, it's not hard to do. log on to cmn.com/impact. consider the silverado 1500 -- still the most dependable, longest-lasting full-size pickups on the road. and now we've also been recognized for lowest total cost of ownership -- based on important things, like depreciation, fuel, and maintenance costs.

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and you pick the price that works for you. great. whoa, whoa, jamie. watch where you point that thing. [ mocking ] "watch where you point that thing." you point yours, i point mine. okay, l-let's stay calm. [ all shouting ] put it down! be cool! everybody, just be cool! does it price better on the side? no, it just looks cooler. the name your price tool, only from progressive. call or click today. i got you covered. thank you. oh, you're so welcome. -people hit once again xshgs they got gas for their cars. that's good. the power is back on. time to get back into the

routine and go back to work, right? the problem is getting there. commuting still pretty much a nightmare for this folks. chad myers, who is watching the transportation situation. most of these tunnels many and out of new york. are they open? how are people getting through? >> they're getting. they're slow, but they're getting. we have even some problems with la guardia still because of the flooded equipment that it has. la guardia, you know, to getting out of there, there was a ground stop earlier. getting better now. still people are laying on the floor. i saw lines to get in the tsa lines. that's how bad it's been. now, let's get down to the ground a little bit because this has changed significantly since i've been talking to you last. the brooklyn battery tunnel opened for at least some bus service. the a-train, though, back to the rockaway, still not open, and probably won't be for quite some time. this bridge system right through here kind of the causeway bridge to get the a-train to the rockaways was just a mess, and it still is going to be that way for a while. south of, let's say, about, i don't know, maybe just soho all the way down to south fery,

these lines are still not working. the bus service, though, is good. now, this happened just this morning, path trains are back working now from new jersey back over to penn station. that's a huge, huge benefit for the people trying to get to new jersey back and forth to manhattan. what i saw at least they are going to work until at least 10:00 tonight, and then maybe it's shut down for more work. i want to take you back to this. you're just not getting enough planes on the ground and enough planes out because of this very low visibility this morning, and we are not even running at low visibility or vfr conditions. we're running very much less than that. if you take a look at some of the planes here, we'll go here.

i'm going to hit stat yushgs and we'll figure out how many are delayed. here's united air. as i go down, it starts to get really ugly when it comes to canceled. we have had hundreds really of scheduled flights canceled in and out of jfk and la guardia. even if you're in memphis and trying to get to new york city, and your plane gets canceled no, problem. i can get the white planes, i can get to sxwr fk. it's been tough. these flights are very, very full. >> tough going still. thank you, chad. appreciate it. we got the warning about about the fiscal cliff. 20 days until the taxes expire. what this could cost you. . consider the silverado 1500 -- still the most dependable, longest-lasting full-size pickups on the road. and now we've also been recognized for lowest total cost of ownership -- based on important things, like depreciation, fuel, and maintenance costs. and now when you come in, you can trade up to get a total value of $8,000 on a 2012 chevy silverado all-star edition. from outstanding value to standing the test of time,

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in exactly 50 days from today taxes will go up if congress doesn't come up with a deal to avoid the so-called fiscal cliff. that's a day that many tax breaks are going to expire, severe budget cuts are going to go into effect if there is no deal. the average middle income family whose family is earning between $40,000 and $65,000 a year will pay merely $2,000 more in taxes next year. the top 20% of americans who make $108,000 or more a year will pay more than $14,000 in additional taxes. here's why. a bunch of tax breaks are expiring. for example, the payroll tax cuts saved middle income families $672 a year in the past year. nearly $2,000 for top earners. for the capital gains tax cuts

saved top earners $996 a year, and i the low income child and student credits saved both groups $103 a we're. those also set to expire. well, they couldn't solve the debt problem last year, but the gang of eight getting back together. can this bipartisan group of senators fix the fiscal problems this go round? americans are always ready to work hard for a better future. since ameriprise financial was founded back in 1894, they've been committed to putting clients first. helping generations through tough times. good times. never taking a bailout. there when you need them. helping millions of americans over the centuries. the strength of a global financial leader. the heart of a one-to-one relationship. together for your future. ♪

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obama care survived the supreme court challenge and a presidential election, but what does it mean for you and your wallet? christine romans breaks it down in this week's smart is the new rich. >> the battle over health reform is over, and the president has been re-elected.

the centerpiece of the legislation, when everyone has to have health insurance or pay a penalty, it doesn't go into effect until 2014. >> if you are a big earner, your taxes are going up. a new medicare sur tax means an individual paying $ -- will pay more a year into medicare. a family earning, say, half a million dollars is going to pay $2,250 more. on top of that the high income families may also be subject to a new 3.8% medicare tax on investment income. that's high earning families. next, if you contribute to a flexible spending account, the maximum amount you can set aside is $2,500. many companies used to allow double that, right? if are you in the middle of open enrollment right now, please plan accordingly. finally, lots of work is happening to get state health insurance exchanges up and running. this is where you will compare and approximate buy plans if you need insurance.

enrollment is supposed to start next october, less than a year from now. so far only 14 states and washington d.c. are planning to establish their own exchange. they're the ones in blue here. other states have opted to partner with the federal government or just let the government come in and run it altogether. states face a november 16th deadline, this friday, to say where they stand. i'm christine roman with this week's smart is the new rich. >> do you think republicans will work to find common ground with democrats? >> i mean, we'll see. everyone is talking about this fiscal cliff. well, guess what, the bush tax cuts are due to expire at the end of the year. republicans thought they would be extended when mitt romney was president. well, to quote wesley snipes, always bet on black. >> yeah. >> all right.

some americans not going to find the fiscal cliff so funny if they have to pay thousands more a we're. now congress negotiating trying to get a debt deal to stop the tax cuts from expiring, these massive budget cuts from going into effect. dana bash, who is on capitol hill. dana, so we know the president is invited congressional leaders from both parties to the white house this friday to talk about all this. there is the lust there. senate majority leader harry reid and senator minority leader mitch mcconnell and nancy pelosi not surprising here. what's the expectation? >> well, you know, we'll see. publicly, suzanne, there has been a much more consillatory tone that we've seen since the election, whether it's from the president or the house speaker john boehner, but i can tell you in talking to sources privately on both sides of the aisle, they admit that it's all about positioning and posturing to make sure at the end of the day if we do go off the fiscal cliff that they're not blamed for it. they're the ones who looked reasonable, not unreasonable, and they're preparing for the other side to blame them for the opposite, if that makes sense. that's a lot of what you are saying in public.

the reality is that neither side has a really clear machine date or clear vote and no one wants to look at the end of the day like they never gave compromise a chance. listen to republican bob corker, though, because there does seem to be a little bit of a crack on the republican side on whether or not it's okay to raise some taxes. >> i think there is a deal. the ying and yang is we know there has to be revenues, and i think -- look, i haven't met a wealthy republican or democrat in tennessee that's not willing to contribute more as long as they know we solve the problem. >> so he is saying, you know, maybe we can raise taxes for some of the wealthy, but, you know, it's cliche, suzanne, but the devil is in the details because what republicans so far have not agreed to is raising those tax rates that president obama ran on, the bush era tax cuts at 35%, up to 39.6% for the

wealthiest americans. what democrats are saying is that they want to use that money for deficit reduction. listen to what chuck schumer said about that. >> the only way mathematically i've seen to do it is go to that 39.6% rate. if someone can show another plan that doesn't do that, we could look at it, but no one has shown one because i think it's mathematically impossible. >> so then the question is where do we go from here? you know, really at this point in the game, although we don't have a lot of time, the clock is ticking big-time until december 31st, democrats definitely feel that they have the leverage and republicans are going to see kind of, you know -- it's sort of the who blinks first situation right now, and you are sort of seeing from republicans, suzanne, some talk, well, maybe we'll take the democrats up on what some proposed, like two years ago of redefining wealth, maybe raising taxes for just those, making a million dollars a year perhaps. >> we've seen this before. we've seen this show before. they've tried this before.

you had the gang of eight the last go round. this is a bipartisan group that tried to hash out the deal last year. dana, we did notice not much diversity in that gang of eight. they are bipartisan, but not a single female in that group. not much diversity. what do we think is going to be different. >> that's why they haven't gotten a deal maybe. they need a woman in the room. >> exactly. >> look, the reality is they are going to meet this coming week, this gang of eight. they did meet during the election season right before the election. they are hard at work, but i am told by leadership sources on the republican and democratic side that at this point of the game that maybe that's not -- it's too late. that the house speaker is really the one having direct conversations with the president and their top aides. not to say that it's not possible. anything is possible. particularly since they have been so hard at work. but just doesn't look like it's going to happen in the next few weeks, which is really what needs to be in order to get this

done. >>. more than a dozen states offer medical marijuana. now two states just legalized recreational use as well. the health benefits of weed. (splashing)... (child screaming underwater)... (underwater noises).

washington state, seattle's king county said it's dismissing all pending marijuana misdemeanors. they are not going to prosecute any of them anymore. that is because soon marijuana is going to be legal in the state of washington. colorado as well. 16 other states and d.c. have also approved it for medical use. according to the u.s. justice department it is still a scheduled one controlled substance. it is the same classification given the things like heroin, lsd, ecstacy. i want to bring in our senior medical correspondent elizabeth

cohen. people talk about this all the time. they try to figure out is it good for you, bad for you? what do you make of this debate? >> i think sometimes there are people that think, wow, fwood for think, good for you, i'm going to smoke, i'm not sick, i'm going to smoke it because it is good for you. that's not the situation. smoking marijuana has been shown to be good for specific medical problems. let's look at what those are. people who suffer from severe nausea have been helped by smoking marijuana. people who need to have their appetite stimulated, for example, aids patients, people on chemotherapy have a tough time eating, this helps them eat. people who suffer neuropathic pain, the pins and needles that people get, marijuana is use follow for that. >> what are the downsides? >> one of the big downsides is it is smoke that contains carcinogens so you're inhaling it into your lungs, similar to cigarettes. that's a problem right there. another problem is for some people marijuana is addictive. the national institute on drug abuse cites a study that shows 9% of marijuana users get

addicted to it, and there are other studies that look at long-term users. when they try to stop using it, they become sleepless, become irritable, it is hard for them to go off of it. >> is there a way to separate the two? the good effects, but not the bad effects. >> right there are two drugs that contain cavanoids in them. that makes pot do all the good things medically. you could take the pill, right? it is a prescription, and the drug enforcement agency says why don't people do that? why do you need to smoke the drug? that is possible. there are pills. if you don't want to smoke pot, but you want the advantages and benefits of pot, that's a road to go down. >> you said 90% for -- 90% of users it is addictive. >> that's one study there are studies that are, you know, find different numbers, but that's one study out there, 9% become addicted. >> it is amazing to see how this is going to be played out because on one hand, allowed by the state, but not the federal government. there is going to be a lot of --

>> wait until the feds come in and, yeah. i see that jeffrey toobin segment in our future, yeah. >> we'll have to sort it all out at another time time. thank you, elizabeth. check out cnn.com/empoweredpatient to learn more. and the man behind elmo is accused of inappropriate relationship with a teenage boy but he denies the allegations. the scandal on sesame street.

ally bank. why they have a raise your rate cd. tonight our guest, thomas sargent. nobel laureate in economics, and one of the most cited economists in the world. professor sargent, can you tell me what cd rates will be in two years? no. if he can't, no one can. that's why ally has a raise your rate cd.

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the epic downfall of lance armstrong continues as he was quit his livestrong foundation entirely. armstrong chose to resign from the foundation to, quote, spare the organization any negative effects as a result of controversy surrounding his cycling career. armstrong previously gave up his position as chairman in the wake of the growing doping scandal. but said he would remain involved. now he still insists he never cheated. puppeteer provides the voice of elmo is on leave of absence from sesame street today.

kevin clash denies he had an inappropriate relationship with a teenage boy. he is being allowed to take time off to protect his reputation. our nischelle turner is following the story from l.a. and, nischelle, tell us what, i guess, sesame street workshop is investigating this, what do we know? >> yeah. there is still a lot of informatn to find out about this, suzanne, but the accuser who is now 23 years old, says this relationship began with kevin clash when he was only 16. clash, however, insists that the accuser was not under age at the time of this relationship. now, sesame street workshop first heard from the accuser back in june. they then conducted their own investigation. here is what they told us since. they said, quote, we took the allegation very seriously and took immediate action. we met with the accuser twice, and had repeated communications with him. we met with kevin, two denied the accusation. we also conducted a thorough investigation and found the allegation of underaged conduct

to be unsubstantiated. during their investigation, the sesame workshop did find that clash used the company e-mail for personal relationship and determined he, quote, exercised poor judgment and violated company policy regarding internet usage. he was later disciplined because of that, suzanne. >> i think -- do we have a statement from representative from kevin clash as well? >> yeah, yeah, we do. you know, he's not denying that there was a relationship, but he is denying strongly there was any wrongdoing. we did just receive a statement from him and here is what he told us. he said, quote, i am a gay man. i've never been ashamed of this or tried to hide it, but i felt it was a personal and private matter. i had a relationship with the accuser. it was between two consenting adults and i'm deeply saddened he's trying to characterize it as something other than what it was. i'm taking a break from sesame workshop to deal with this false and defamatory allegation. the sesame street company tells us that elmo is, quote, bigger

than any one person and will continue to be a part of sesame street. but we'll have to see how this whole thing plays out, because we also reached out to reported attorneys for the accuser, and what they told us was the reports out there are untrue. now, they wouldn't clarify if these reports were of what's going on within the story, or if the reports that they are representing him were untrue. we're still trying to sort that out right now. >> all right. nischelle, thank you. appreciate it. two senators are launching a bipartisan plan to reform immigration. democratic senator chuck schumer and republican senator lindsey graham are resuming talks, talks that ended two years ago. well, the plan has got four parts here. first, requiring high tech fraud proof social security cards. second, creating a process for admitting temporary workers. also, strengthening border security and, finally, defining a path to citizenship for immigrants already in the country. here's what senator schumer had to say on "meet the press."

>> we're talking to our colleagues about this right now. and i think we have a darn good chance using this blueprint to get something done this year. the republican party has learned that being anti-illegal, anti-immigrant doesn't work for them politically and they know it. >> there are an estimated 12 million illegal immigrants here in the united states. "cnn newsroom" continues right now with ted rowlands. >> i'm ted rowlands in for brooke baldwin. less than a week since the election, david petraeus has commandeered the national conversation. official washington is racing today to determine whether the downfall of the nation's top spy is merely a breathtaking sex scandal or perhaps something worse. paula broadwell, 20 years petraeus' junior and married mom of two hasn't told her side of the affair, not in public yet, but she reportedly met petraeus in 2006 at a public event at harvard when petraeus was a